MSU president appoints associate vice president of the Office for Civil Rights

EAST LANSING — Michigan State University is "poised to become a national leader" in preventing sexual violence, according to the school's next Office for Civil Rights leader. 

It's a leading reason why Tanya Jachimiak, the Title IX and Section 504 coordinator at Wake Forest University, agreed to become the associate vice president for the MSU Office for Civil Rights and Title IX Education and Compliance. She starts on Feb. 3.

It was an easy decision for Jachimiak, “because of all the amazing work that MSU has been doing in improving and building upon structures to prevent and respond to sexual misconduct and interpersonal violence,” she said. “It was an incredible opportunity to be a part of an amazing team that is doing amazing work that will continue to do so.” 

MSU President Samuel Stanley Jr. appointed Jachimiak to the position after a national search, said MSU spokesperson Emily Guerrant. Jachimiak replaces Robert Kent, who filled the role since June 2018. He will remain in an advisory role until March 1 and then return to the Office of the General Counsel.

Former MSU Interim President John Engler appointed Kent in June 2018, a move criticized by victim advocates because Kent had defended the university against sexual assault lawsuits in his role with the Office of the General Counsel. 

Kent replaced Jessica Norris, who accepted a job out of state. 

Jachimiak will lead and provide oversight of the MSU Prevention, Outreach and Education Department — which promotes safety from sexual assault and relationship violence on campus — as well as the Office of Institutional Equity and Resolution Office.

The OIE reviews discrimination and harassment complaints.

She lauded those departments' work, like the MSU Climate Survey that allowed students, faculty and staff to share their experiences with sexual misconduct and relationship violence, and the university’s “Our Commitment” website that aims to keep the campus community informed as the university works to create a safer and more welcoming campus.

MSU's Office for Civil Rights also has drawn criticism.

The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights began investigating after finding MSU wasn't complying with Title IX and the Clery Act in handling allegations levied against convicted sex offender Larry Nassar and former dean William Strampel.

The federal office said it will look at an allegation from alumna Hannah Smith, who said MSU failed to provide a prompt response to her Title IX complaint. 

Smith alerted a professor early last year about another faculty member who Smith said made inappropriate comments several times. The professor reported to the OIE on Jan. 30, 2018.  

A total of 582 days elapsed from the report to the end of a failed appeal. 

Jachimiak said she plans to review the length of investigations when she arrives at MSU.

During her time at Wake Forest, she worked to raise awareness and prevention of sexual assault. Now, students at Wake Forest take mandatory online courses to learn about sexual assault, and the university also works with student leaders in Greek Life.

Jachimiak said she will work to ensure all MSU populations are being served by the OIE office and to assure there aren’t any barriers preventing students, especially those from marginalized communities, from accessing those services.

She also hopes to build relationships and collaborations with campus partners who can help toward the ultimate goal of making MSU’s campus safe and equitable for all.

“The number of not only incidents of sexual misconduct and interpersonal violence and bias incidents across the campus is a crisis,” she said. “All campuses across the country are in need to address those issues. Decreasing those and providing support for all of our students is absolutely essential.”

MSU used a national search firm and a university search committee to identify candidates for the position, Guerrant said, in an email. Two finalists were identified in the first round and came to the East Lansing campus to make public presentations. 

The first round ultimately failed "as neither candidate was ideally what MSU needed," Guerrant said. The search process rebooted and Jachimiak and one other candidate came to campus last month before Jachimiak was appointed. 

Reclaim MSU, an activist group comprised of MSU students, faculty and staff, supported the search process.

“It was a good decision to reopen this position to secure the strongest possible candidates,” the group said in a statement Friday. “All searches at the university should be open and competitive to make sure that we have the best people in leadership positions at MSU.”

Jachimiak has a crucial role to “make sure we’re doing everything we can to have a safe, welcoming, and inclusive campus for everyone,” said Dianne Byrum, MSU Board of Trustees chairperson, in a telephone interview.

“This is an important post for MSU, and we are pleased to have someone with Tanya’s background join us,” Stanley said in a statement from the press release. “She brings valuable experience in leading complex teams and developing successful programs. She will be a key asset as we continue to expand our relationship violence, sexual misconduct and discrimination prevention and response efforts.”

Contact Mark Johnson at 517-377-1026 or at majohnson2@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ByMarkJohnson.